We sought advice from this TA forum as we were looking for a place that had shore snorkeling directly off the property.
It was a difficult decision as West Bay beach was reported to be a very busy beach.
It took a while to understand the physical layout of this tiny island. West Bay is a beach and West End is a town?. We decided to go with Las Sirenas because it was smaller and quieter.
The day we arrived the island was drenched by torrential rains, it was so bad that our aircraft was diverted to the Belize airport as visibility of the runway in Roatan was poor.
Check in was a breeze and we were escorted to our room (nicely furnished) which was at the back end of the resort .. overlooking a flooded parking lot (& most of the island).
During the night we discovered that rain had blown in under the door, the windows were leaking and water on the marble floors was a safety hazard.
The next morning we alerted the staff at the front desk and they had the room cleaned up by the time we got back from breakfast.
The rain cloud had stalled over the island as it was looking like there was going to be 3 more days of rain (half our holiday!)! We were feeling trapped as we did not have a balcony and did not want to be cooped up in a room, so we went to the office to see if our room could be changed.
Noelle was the manager and she could understand how we were feeling. She said she would do her best to move us, but would need some time.
Within a couple of hours the staff helped us move our luggage to a one bedroom, second floor, ocean front condo!! We were so appreciative of her efforts and felt that a couple more days of rain wouldn't be so bad as long as we could sit outside.
We loved the resort. It was small and staff were very friendly. They bent over backwards to ensure we were having a pleasant vacation. There were some staff that could not understand English, but we worked it out. There was always someone who could help us.
The rooms and grounds were immaculate!! People worked day and night to keep the grounds clean, shrubs & gardens manicured. The ladies who cleaned our room were very thorough and I loved the towel art decorated with flowers.
The food was adequate. Lunch & dinner offered various types of meat ...chicken, fish, pork, salads, rice/potatoes ....and there was always fresh fruit.
We don't select accommodations based on the availability of 'All Inclusive meals' as we like to experience other restaurants.
The one negative about the restaurant was the design ... we sat along one wall and the tables were too close together .....
We booked a dinner at Paradise Beach Club and that was nice to sit in a different environment.
The beach had beautiful sand, that was well groomed.
Lucie, our Sunwing rep gave us some excellent advice about sand fleas. She encouraged us to wash our feet and our foot wear prior to going into our room. The sand flees didn't get much food from us! Thanks Lucie.
We were disappointed with the snorkeling. There were washouts along the beach which meant 'run off' .... we didn't feel comfortable about that as we wondered what was draining into this area where we were snorkeling. As well, the washout exposed large white pipes draining into the water.
The area near the wall tended to be quite congested with people snorkeling or standing in the water had having a chit chat. Something I've never experience before was having a fish lure thrown out towards me .. missing me by a few feet!! Shore fishing too??
There was a lot of boat traffic so there was no way we could snorkel from our resort to the wall.
TGI Dive Shop is located at Henry Morgans and we went out as snorkelers with one of the dive boats. We would not do that again as we felt like we were in the way ... this experience paled in comparison to other dive boats we've been on. That being said, the snorkeling was fabulous!!
Thank you those of you who took the time to help us with our decision to visit Roatan!
Photos of resort, room, attractions etc at:
http://www.pbase.com/snorkelady/roatan_honduras_2011
- Las Sirenas Roatan
- Las Sirenas Hotel Roatan
